Saturday, February 6, 2016

Review of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES: Gentility and Gore

February 5, 2016




The title of this film alone is such a striking oxymoron I simply had to go watch it. I first heard of this title as a book when "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" film came out in 2012. These two best-selling genre-mixing novels were written by the same author, Seth Grahame-Smith. I liked Lincoln-Vampire mashup, so this one should be good too.

Like, the original classic by Jane Austen, this story is set in England in the early 19th century. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have five unmarried daughters. Their new neighbor, the rich and eligible Mr. Bingley immediately got smitten with Jane, the eldest and prettiest sister. However, the even richer Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bingley's aloof friend, immediately got into conflict with the second-eldest and more head-strong sister, Elizabeth.

In this twisted version though, the whole romantic comedy of manners is told in the background of a rising zombie apocalypse threatening to overrun the entirety of England. Therefore, the Bennet girls had all gone to China to train to be skillful fighters to protect their town against the zombie menace. 

"Pride and Prejudice" described the class struggles in the name of romance so well that even with absurd elements like a zombie invasion, it remains to be so good, and delightful to watch. The witty exchange of words is timeless, just as sharp now as it was back then. I have seen the previous film version starring Oscar-nominated Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfayden as Elizabeth and Darcy. To be fair, the new young actors in this version certainly did very well in their portrayal of the reluctant lovers as well. 

Lily James was a feisty, strong and kickass Elizabeth Bennet. Sam Riley had the arrogant and mysterious air required for the role of Mr. Darcy. You can really feel the romantic chemistry between these two even when they were antagonistic with each other. Jack Huston was convincing as Mr. Wickham, a military man whom Elizabeth admired but with whom Darcy was at odds. Bella Heathcote and Douglas Booth make a very handsome couple as Jane Bennet and Mr. Bingley. Matt Smith is a constant scene-stealer as the awkwardly hilarious pastor, Mr. Collins. 

A couple of Game of Thrones actors shine in smaller roles. Charles Dance plays against his usual tough-guy stance this time. As the good-hearted and progressive patriarch Mr. Bennet. Dance was actually delightful and smiling. Lena Headey is very much in her element as the imposing Lady Catherine de Bourgh, eyepatch and all. The development of her character in the story though leaves something to be desired.

Cinematography, production design, costumes, makeup and visual effects were all meticulously well-done.  It was just too bad that the screen in the cinema where i watched was so dimly lit, so I could hardly see what was happening in those dark scenes. I liked the paper cutout style animation that accompanied the opening credits. By the way, there will be a short extra scene in the middle of the closing credits, so do not leave right away.

As a whole, I liked this unlikely mix of gentility and gore by director Burr Steers, who also wrote the adapted screenplay from both Grahame-Smith and Austen herself. As these two genres are diametrically opposed to each other, many purists may not like the combination. Personally, I thought it was all ingenious and very entertaining, though I was expecting more from the zombie aspect of the project. Classics fans should not worry because Jane Austen's witticism certainly survives the zombie onslaught here. 8/10. 


24 comments:

  1. Sounds interesting. While I'm not a huge fan of zombie movies, I'd watch this because I'm a huge Game Of Thrones fan. lol Besides an 8/10 rating from you is enough to convince me this is worth watching. Thank you for sharing.

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  2. I remember another US historical movie that has a vampire angle to it. The title escapes my mind but it was popular.

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  3. I was hesitant to watch this because, well, it's Pride and Prejudice... then zombies? But this review is totally convincing, and the rating is high enough to make people watch it! Now I'm curious.

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  4. haha.. the title can throw you off.i thought it was one of those weird, B movies, haha.

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  5. Oh, I dismissed this as one of those parody movies. I guess this serves as a lesson not to judge a movie by its title.

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  6. I'm itching to see this! I loved that some actors from Game of Thrones are in it!

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  7. This is a really unique zombie movie. It deviates from just being a pure scarefest but it becomes a mix of a lot of things.

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  8. You will laugh if I will mention that I am so scared to watch all these movies.

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  9. I m not sure thos movie will be screened in my country or not. But I am going to watch it because i like gore movies and the setting.

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  10. A few of my friends are trying to watch this, but it's not on my priority. Too many review these days and it's a little overwhelming...

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  11. Was wondering whether it's worth watching or not since i never got around finishing the book. Maybe it's worth a shot.

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  12. Interesting storyline. I have read original novel by Jane Austin and love it. It would be nice to watch how the new elements added enhance the overall appeal.

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  13. i am definitely watching this one. The Pride and Prejudice meets Zombies idea is kinda new but also weird. However, I am gonna give this one a chance since Lena headey is in it and I am a die hard GOT fan.

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  14. Now that's interesting. That's angels vs demons indeed... Btw, GoT has opened up the careers of quite a few actors...

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  15. Zombies aren't my thing but I am interested in seeing how the zombie apocalypse was married into Pride & Prejudice. The film must have had a good ton of budget for make-up for you to give them an 8/10 rating.

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  16. I actually just saw the review for this about 2 weeks ago and I've been tempted to go and take a look. This is actually my kind of movie. :)

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  23. Haven't heard of this film yet. But it seems like a great movie although I prefer to watch this at home instead of at the movie house.

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  24. First time to hear this movie, I'll ask my eldest daughter if she knows about this since she is updated with the upcoming movies.

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